Sunday, January 13, 2019

Ronald Sidney Tauranac : Born 13 January 1925.Tauranac is a retired Australian engineer and racing car designer, who with Formula One driver Jack Brabham founded the Brabham constructor and racing team in 1962. Following Brabham's retirement as a driver at the end of the 1970 season, Tauranac owned and managed the Brabham team through 1971, but sold it the following year to Bernie Ecclestone. He remained in England to assist with a redesign of a Politoys Formula One chassis for Frank Williams in 1973 and helped Trojan develop a Formula One version of their Formula 5000 car.After a brief retirement in Australia, Tauranac returned to England to establish the Ralt marque (a name he and his brother Austin had used for some 'specials' in Australia in the 1950s, winning the NSW Hillclimb Championship in 1954 with the Ralt 500). The first "modern" Ralt was the Ralt RT1 chassis, to be raced in Formula Three, Formula Two and Formula Atlantic. The chassis proved successful, winning the European Formula Three championship in 1975 in the hands of Australian driver Larry Perkins. The 1978 season also proved successful for the RT1 chassis, winning the European F3 championship for Jan Lammers.Tauranac designed the Theodore Racing F1 car for the 1978 season. Two new designs were created for the 1979 season: the RT2 for Formula Two and the RT3 for Formula Three. The RT3 chassis won the 1983 European F3 championship for Pierluigi Martini and five consecutive British F3 titles. A joint venture with Honda resulted in the RH6 chassis, which won the 1981, 1984 and 1985 titles. In October 1988, Tauranac sold the Ralt business to March Engineering for £1.25 million.Tauranac has remained involved with various aspects of the sport since departing from Ralt, including racing-school cars for Honda, a Formula Renault car, consulting work for the Arrows Formula One team, and continuing his relationship with Honda that goes back to their early Formula Two days as engine supplier to Brabham in the 1960s. He has moved back to Australia but retains an interest in the sport. Tauranac can be seen each year as a design judge at the Formula SAE Australasia competition in Melbourne, Australia.(ph: bomboratv.com, source: wikipedia.com)

LASOS SPORTS
This is body number 7, the last one built in Medindie in Adelaide by John Taylor and Peter Brady.
These bodies were fitted on a variety of Chassis. This is one of several originally built using Singer parts. It did have a South Australian registration history and was driven on Adelaide streets for some years. In the early 70’s it was refitted with a space frame chassis and 120E Ford Cortina running gear. It has existed in this form since 1977.
I have been unable to find any competition history – but who knows?
It now exists as a substantially complete rolling chassis with engine and gear box. It is a project in need of a fair amount of work but none of it difficult. Some welding and fibreglass work and your special touches will make a great cheap GEAR type track car, come road car.
For more information contact Steve on 08 8553 7338.
I am looking for $7500 but am negotiable with a serious buyer.

NOW ONLY $7500.00. AND BY THE WAY, THE PREVIOUS OWNER HAS FOUND THE BOOT LID.

Saturday, January 12, 2019

Jason found some time to catch up with Peter Parnell on Brisbane's North side. Peter is doing a great job on Col Cuthbert's old car which he documents on a blog called "Mark 7 Bolwell" like, for example, the fitting of a 178 KW RX8 rotary which sits back 400mm behind the front cross member.

Jason liked the outside door handles that sit flush with the top and side of the door but I think they're from a particular model Toyota Crown and were popular among early Mk.7 builders.

Here is the stance the front of the car takes.

The rear lights are impressive but they too have been tried by others and are also from a Toyota Crown that was slightly newer than the Crown that provided the original lights.

According to Jason the IRS is a work of art and the the car sports 2 x 20L fuel tanks that sit behind each seat. The last photo shows a fuel tank and a bit of the rear suspension.